U.S. President Donald Trump threatened to hike tariffs against China and cancel a planned meeting with President Xi Jinping, in a broadside against Beijing that sent markets and relations between the world’s largest economies into a spiral on Friday.

Trump, due to meet Xi in about three weeks in South Korea, complained on social media about what he called China’s plans to hold the global economy hostage after China dramatically expanded its rare earths export controls on Thursday.

He said there was no reason to hold the meeting with Xi that he had previously announced. Beijing had never publicly confirmed the meeting between the leaders.

Increase In Tariffs

Trump also threatened a “massive” increase in tariffs on U.S. imports from China. The step could revive a destabilising tit-fo

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